Process for producing leather welts



Patented Jan. 31, 1928.

"UNITED STATES SYLVAN MILTON STRAITS, 0F GLOVERSVILLE, NEW' VILLE WELTco, rim, or enovniasvi'nnn, new YORK.

PROCESS FOR PRODUCING LEATHER WELTS.

No Drawing.

This invention relates to a process or method for producing fiat stripsof leather of uniform width, with straight edges, and of a length manytimes as great as the length of the skins from which the same is made.

In the manufacture of gloves and other articles made of leather a weltis used, this being a narrow strip of leather adapted to,

be introduced into the work, sometimes through guides that are apart ofthe equipment of the sewing machine and the passageways through whichare such that a welt strip of more than a given thickness, or one theedges whereof are not parallel and straight, cannot pass therethrough.It is usually desirable to limit the thickness of the welt strip,although in the manufacture of the cheaper grades of gloves and the likebut little attention is paid to the thickness of the welt.

Similar strips, but of somewhat greater width are also used for bindingsin the manufacture of certain leather and canvas goods, and thesebinding'strips are often to have their edges folded bypassing themthrough, a folding device. When the strips are to be used for bindingsit is very desirable that the thickness thereof be limited to anallowable maximum. 7

As skins vary in thickness, and the thickness of each skinvariesatdifferent points therein, and a welt strip if made of two piecesjoined together will naturally V be thicker at the point of joining, ithas heretofore been impracticable in the production of the finer gradeof gloves to make use of welt strips having a length which was greaterthan that of the skin from which it was out, on account of theiinpracticability of cementingthe short lengths end to end withoutproducing more than the allowable maximum thickness at the joints and ofmaintaining absolute parallelism of the edges of the diiferentjoinedparts which make up the spliced welt, by keeping the edges of the joinedparts in perfect alignment.

This invention has for its object the production of flat, comparativelynarrow, straight strips of leather of uniform width, the thicknesswhereof is at all points limited to an allowable maximum, so as toinsure the .ness of the Application filed January 25, 1926. Serial No.83,770.

free passage thereof through the guide when the welts are being used inthe manufacture of gloves, and through the folding devices when they areused as bindings on'leather and canvas goods, such as sporting goods.This process is particularly applicable to the production of glove weltsto be used in the higher grades of work as'it will materially redure thecost of producing such welts in long lengths, and will at the same timeinsure a perfectly straight, smooth running and working welt a welt verysuperior to those heretofore produced, in that they are of more uniformthickness and the edges thereof are not only parallel to each other butare also straight throughout their entire length. i

Instead of initially cutting the skinsinto strips whichaire the width ofthe desired welt, and cementing the strips together end to end until thedesired length is attained,

necessarily depending on the natural thickskins and the eXpert-ness ofthe workmen to keep the thickness of the strip within theallowable limitat the points joined together, and to where the pieces are maintain theedges of the joined pieces in exact alignment, I employ a variation oftheuisual procedure, and introduce certain operations not heretoforeused in the productionof glove welts and the like.

The skins from which the strips, aremade,

usually sheep skins, are first subjected to a tacking process in orderto firm them. The skins being sufficiently firmed, they are" now outinto strips the width whereof is more than twice as great as the widthof the welts to be produced. This cutting may be done on any type ofmultiple disc leather cutting machine. The ends of these strips are nextsquared, this being done on any suitable shear having associatedtherewith guiding means which will insure a square end; and

YORK, ASSIGNOR TO GLO VERS- the squared ends are then skived down toalmost a feathered edge, opposite ends being preferably skived onopposite sides. The short strips so prepared are next cemented togetherend to end, the skived ends lapping onto each other, until a strip of adesired length has been produced.

The strip is now preferably measured, by being run through a suitablemeasuring mechanism, to insure. its being of the proper All length; butthe next step in, my complete preferred process is the reduction inthickness of any part of the manufactured strip which may be in excessof the allowable maximum, either by reason of thick spots in the skinfrom which the parts thereof were cut or to the lapping of the parts atthe points of joining, by scraping off a part of the skin at the pointswhere such excess occurs, or removing the excess thickness in anypractical manner. This is preterably accomplished by passing themanufactured strip through feed rolls designed to maintain a tension onthe strip as it is passing therethrough, one of said rolls lying in suchclose proximity to a rotating abrasive wheel or roll that the distancebetween the surface of the abrasive roll and one of the feed rolls, overwhich the strip of skin is passing, is equal to the allowable maximumthickness of the welt being produced. The

surface of the abrasive rolllis caused to travel in the same directionas, but at a.

aigher speed thanis, the strip of leather, thereby causing any thickparts of, or points in the strip to be worn down to the allowablemaximum thickness.

The gaged strip of leather is next passed through a leather cuttingmachine which comprises a serieso-f cutting knives or discs so spacedthat the-distance between adjacent cutters vis equal tothe width ofthewelt strips which are wanted. Thewidth of the initially formed, stripwhich is to be divided into welt widths is to be somewhat greater thanthe distance between the end cutters of the series; and itiis tobe soguided into the machine that a narrow waste strip will be cut fromeachedge thereof,.thereby insuringabsolutely true, straight, parallel edgeson each ofthelong, welt strips which this operation completes,

As these-welts emerge from thecutting machine they areipreferably passedthrough a reed which will separate them one from the other and directeachinto its individual receiver. These welts may, however, be

delivered directly to machines adapted to wind them upon spools orbobbins.

I. claim:

1. A method of producing long lengths of glove welts consisting ininitially cutting firmed skins into strips the width whereof is suchthat a plural number of finished strips of the desired width may he cuttherefrom and leave a remainder, squaring the ends of the initially cutstrips and skivin r the squared ends, cementing the skivcd square endedstrips together end to end, reducing any orcrlhick spots in theresulting fabricated strip to an llllOWtllJlB lllflXllTlllll], thensinmltaneously trimming both edges of the strip in straight parallellines and slitting the remainder thereof into strips of the desiredwidth.

2. A method of producing simultaneously a multiple number of long,narrow leather strips with straight parallel sides consisting ofinitially cutting skins into striis slightly wider than the sum of thewidths of a plural number of the finished strips such as are to heproduced, squaring then skivingthe squared ends of said strips,cementing the. skived square ended strips to gcther end to end, thensimultaneously trimming both edges of the resulting fabricated stripinstraight parallel lines and slitting the remainder into strips of thedesiredwidth.

3. A method of producing simultaneously a multiple number of long,narrow leather strips with straight'parallel sides consisting tinitially cutting skins into strips slightly wider than the sum of thewidths of a plural number of the finished strips such as are to beproduced, skiving the ends of said strips, cementing them together endto end, then simultaneously trimming both edges of the resultingfabricated strip in straight parallel lines and slittingthe remainderinto' strips ofthe desired widths.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature.

SYLVAN MILTON STRAU S.

